The Paths Diverge - Outtakes
by Vaneria Potter
Summary: Expanded or missing scenes from my story "The Paths Diverge", which is required reading if you want this to make any sense. Requests are welcome.
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or any of the associated characters._

_Summary: having hit a block on some of my other stories, I decided to follow requests and flesh out a few scenes from "The Paths Diverge"._

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**THE FALLOUT OF THE LAKE**

The public reaction to a muggle being kidnapped to participate in the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament had been disappointing, but not unexpected.

The Wizarding World in general didn't care about the rights of Muggles, unless it directly affected them. Other than paying for the Muggle-born to attend Hogwarts or occasionally marrying a witch or wizard, Muggles had nothing to do with the Wizarding World, and there was no need to borrow trouble or get stirred up over something that would blow over in a week.

The Ministry of Magic cared even less, as evidenced by the fact that standard practice for Obliviators was to go in and remove the memory, leaving the unfortunate witness to imagine all sorts of horrible things that could have caused the blank spots in their memory, and that no research had ever been conducted into the damage that could be caused by multiple Obliviations.

When an awkward situation came up, the preferred reaction was to find a scapegoat, make an example of them, and hope that the public moved onto something else quickly.

Of course, the Muggle-born and Half-blooded who remained in the Wizarding World would have kicked up a much larger stir about Natasja Irons (something of a quiet folk-heroine to some for proving that Muggle ancestry was nothing to be sneered at) being kidnapped... If they had known about it.

Most of them, unless they were somehow connected to a very powerful Pureblood family, had fled during the last war with Voldemort, which meant that most of the Muggle-borns and Half-bloods that remained were those who had been in school during Voldemort's War, and in positions where they had to rely on the media for news of what was happening in the world around them.

The Media, who normally pounced on such news-worthy stories faster than a cat on a mouse, did occasionally practice common sense. Despite four of their investigative journalists having known Tom Riddle personally, none of them had even considered running a story on Voldemort's origins. When Voldemort fell, they left the How's and Whys to the children's fiction writers and people who made a living studying magical theory.

As one editor had pointed out, anything involving Harry Potter sold wonderfully, but anything involving the Irons family tended to be a catalyst for upheaval. No-one was about to forget the chaos during the investigation of child safety, and the Irons' hadn't even been directly involved beyond stopping the Longbottom boy from drowning!

Instead, the Daily Prophet ran a smaller piece on the Second Task, not involving much more than Placing, scores, that the task involved retrieving someone from the mer-people in the Black Lake... And that a underling in the Department of Magical Games and Sports had been dismissed for ignoring rules and procedures in the lead up to the task.

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The Muggle in question, meanwhile, was lying in bed with a cold, a mug of lemon- ginger- and honey-infused hot water on her bedside table, and a pile of marking in her lap.

At least the Task had taken place on a weekend, so there were no awkward explanations to provide at work, and Henry had spelled the mug to maintain a constant temperature. Besides, her husband was only a phone call away if she needed him, and Harry was safely in the living room with his friends and their tutors.

While the incident had been very disturbing for her, thirteen years of motherhood had given Natasja a lot of practice in looking at the positives, and there had been no permanent damage. Her family was safe and happy for another few months (and hopefully after the Third Task was done, the quiet might actually last), and that was all she really wanted out of life.

Truly, the whole thing had been far more upsetting for Henry and Harry than for her. Natasja had been asleep for most of it, but her husband and son had gone through far more worry and stress.

* * *

Constable Henry Irons tried to focus on his paperwork, trying to remind himself that his wife was safe at home and would still be there when he returned.

Of course that didn't stop the nightmares of the past couple of nights - thankfully Natasja was a deep,sleeper - or the fear that led him to hold her closer at night as they slept, or constantly check on her whereabouts. His colleagues had been satisfied by vague mentions of Natasja catching I'll and the headmaster of Harry's old school trying to convince them to bring him back, even if it had earned teasing remarks about overprotective husbands.

But Henry had endured several hours of worrying when his wife hadn't returned from the early trip to the local market and wasn't answering her phone. Only the knowledge that there was a waiting period before someone was declared missing, that Natasja could defend herself against most attackers and that their son's well-being in the Triwizard Tournament came first, had made him go to Hogwarts that morning, instead of raising a bigger fuss.

Somehow, the fact that his wife could take out Bellatrix's LeStrange with only the contents of her kitchen had let him think that she was almost untouchable, and the Second Task was a vicious reminder that this wasn't the case.

* * *

Harry Potter-Irons had known from a young age that most of the Wizarding world had no common sense to speak of.

As such, it had been all too easy for him to assume that the clue had been telling the truth, and that if he didn't get "what he'd sorely miss" back within an hour, he wouldn't get it back at all. It was a good thing that he hadn't known that his mother was the hostage before the task, or things might have gone even worse.

Seeing his mother floating at the bottom of the lake, still and unresponsive, was going to haunt him for a long time.

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_A/N: So, outtake one is here! I hope you liked it._

_The actual request was for a public outcry against Dumbledore, but since the WW seems to rely on the Ministry and the Daily Prophet for information, and believes them with very little question, I didn't think it was very likely, so you got this instead._

_This will be updated infrequently, and based of requests from the readers_.


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or any of the associated characters._

_Summary: See Previous Chapters_

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**Outtake Two: Remus**

In his defence, Remus Lupin hadn't gone to Little Whinging _intending_ to hurt the Muggle, or to scare the children.

But Harry was the last remenant of the best - only - friends he had ever had. James, Lily and Peter were dead, and Sirius in prison for his part in their murders. Remus was unable to do anything about any of it, but he could do something to protect their legacy.

Remus hadn't been able to take Harry in after that fateful Halloween, thanks to Ministry regulations about "dark creatures". He had allowed himself to be persuaded to stay away, for fear of Voldemort's followers somehow using him to find Harry. He had fought a losing battle against drowning in misery and guilt.

Then Dumbledore had found him again, spinning a tale of Harry being taken into the custody of a woman who claimed to be a Muggle, but had successfully disabled several very competent witches and wizards. That had seemed a dubious claim, at best, but a quick inquiry at the Ministry had confirmed it.

Perhaps a Squib? Not unlike werewolves, a wizarding family choosing to keep in touch with a pureblood child who never received a Hogwarts letter was very much the exception, rather than the norm. Those who were shunned by their families for something that was never their fault often grew bitter, especially when faced with discrimination and hardship.

If she taught him to hate the Wizarding World, to reject his heritage… well, it wouldn't end well. A Celebrity standing up against society seldom did.

More than one half-blood had supported Voldemort for their own safety, for what little good it did them. So had some few Muggleborns, who had managed to keep their family background quiet, or pretended to be merely Muggle-raised, orphaned as a child. It was not an impossibility, and for some reason, such an excuse was reputed to sometimes elicit sympathy from Voldemort.

If this Muggle woman was one of them… Remus shuddered to think of how many different ways that could end badly.

If nothing else, Remus had to at least check that Harry was safe. He owed James and Lily that much, at least.

* * *

Harry was instantly recognisable, going at it hammer and tongs with another boy with rolling pins! The Muggle who called herself his mother only stood by and laughed as they rained blows down on each other, even though she must have known how dangerous it was.

Remus saw red, feeling as though all of his worst fears were confirmed in that moment, and shouted a stunning curse without thinking.

Suddenly, he felt the burning pain of silver in his arm, just as a rolling pin slammed into his gut, wielded by a very angry Harry Potter. The rolling pin didn't hurt, much, and Remus recognised the feel of a cushioning charm, but the anger and betrayal in the eyes of his best friend's son hurt even worse than the pain of the silver, which sent him to the ground.

* * *

When Remus woke up, he was in a holding cell at a police station, and a vaguely familiar man was leaning against the opposite wall, on the other side of the bars, twirling a wand between his fingers. At least it wasn't Remus's wand. "Off the record, because I don't feel like being put on psychiatric leave for mentioning werewolves, do you want to explain why you attacked my family?"

Remus winced at the phrasing, having tried his entire life to avoid being lumped in with the werewolves who really were monsters, who went around attacking people. "I didn't go there intending to hurt anyone, if that helps. How did you know what I am?"

The Officer rolled his eyes. "Your reaction to silver was a bit of a giveaway. I'm a bit sensitive to people who hurt my wife and frighten my son, so you being a werewolf doesn't really affect my intense desire to make your life miserable, if that helps."

Remus winced again. Work was hard to find even in the Muggle World, when you required three days off every month, and a criminal record would make it even harder. What was worse was that he couldn't really fault the Officer or his family for being angry. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

The man shrugged, "Henry Irons. My wife is Natasja. You pranked me a couple of times while we were at Hogwarts. I still don't approve of how you and your gang got away with everything just because Dumbledore thought you were funny."

Remus closed his eyes and leaned back, thumping his head against the wall. "For what it's worth, I apologise for that. What are you planning on doing with me?"

Henry pushed himself off the wall. "You're going to give me an exact account of how you found us and why you acted as you did. You are then going to make a wizard's oath that you will not come near any us until and unless we invite you. In return, we will explain that you were supposed to surprise a friend who had just moved, but were given the wrong address, and things got out of hand."

It was better than Remus could normally have hoped for, and much better than most wizards would have offered. Then again, most wizards would have killed him and claimed self-defence, so pretty much anything was better than that.

At least he knew that Harry was thriving in his new home, scant consolation though it was.

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_A/N: So, yeah, this took way longer than I expected. To be fair, I've been insanely busy, what with looking for a new job, and all the other projects that I'm working on._

_Remus panicking when people he cares about are involved might sound strange, but I'm basing it off Canon, like PoA, where he sees Sirius and Harry and rushes out without drinking his Potion or telling anyone else. Or DH, where he knows the risks that the Trio will be taking and tries to go with them, leaving his pregnant wife behind._

_In this, Remus has already been working himself into a panic, and sees something that seems to confirm his worst fears. He's only human, even if the person he attacked isn't quite so understanding. She's only human, too._

_Thanks,_

_Nat_


	3. IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!

_On a side (and totally awesome) note: I HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED AGAIN!_

_The newest of my books, '**Snow White Learns Stranger Danger**__, is now available through Amazon dot com in kindle and paperback formats!_

_Unfortunately, that means that it has to be taken down from this site. I'll leave the first chapter or so available as a preview of sorts._

_I'm still working on__ '**Beautiful, Inside and Out**' and '_**_Eternity's Invitation_**_', both of which are being posted in 'first draft' form on this site. The next story in the series, chronologically, will be '**Red Riding Hood and the Stalker**'._

_Thanks,_

_Nat_


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